Tag Archives: connection

I haven’t been dancing as regularly as I’d like, and haven’t been social dancing in a few months. This is partly due to a knee injury I am trying to sort out. But I couldn’t stand it anymore. I was missing dance, especially zouk, for so long. So the other night, I finally went back to our weekly zouk social.

As soon as I walked in and heard the music, my body did this kind of ahhhh like release. As if it was just waiting for me to get back, and now it could be free to be happy again. It’s kind of crazy how dance can have that affect on you. Zouk music- even the mixes that aren’t authentic zouk but carry that beat, make me feel that beat inside me. It enlivens something from within that only other dancers could understand.

You can learn a lot from someone just by watching, especially if you learn HOW to observe.

On some nights, when I am out at a dance social or even at a practica, I might not have the energy to dance every song. Sometimes, I am not even sure I have the energy to dance at all. But I try to remind myself that the learning doesn’t just come from what you do, it also comes from what you see.

My initial fascination with dance definitely came from seeing people dancing, seeing the movement, the expression, witnessing the joy and energy that came from dancers who were feeling the music. Yes, their inspiration stemmed from the feeling that came from within them. Something I couldn’t see in a tangible sense. But, it poured out from them through their connection to the floor, to their partner, to their smiles, to their gritty, passionate style and flavor. And THAT- what I saw, was what drew me into wanting to dance. The desire to do what those dancers were doing came out in me because I saw that desire in them.

​I started dancing in 2009 after taking some salsa and bachata lessons at McGill. My dancing journey eventually followed me to Toronto, where I got introduced to zouk, and from there on, no other dance has had my heart quite like zouk does. I’ve dabbled into other dances like bellyDancing, kizomba, and dancehall. While they do bring out certain parts of me, zouk allows me to express myself in ways I almost can’t explain. Continue reading →

(That you’ll be able to adore me, again! I know that you won’t forget me!)

Each of these lines is written in aqua blue across my bathroom, hallway and closet mirrors. The words are the lyrics to the song Verás, which I was introduced to in a live performance at the 1st Vancouver Mini Congress this fall. I don’t remember ever making it to the early parts of any dance congresses before. I usually like to save my energy for hanging out with friends and then social dancing later. Yet, something that weekend compelled me to skip out on a good friend’s pre-party and show up early for a film being shown at the congress instead.

Tasleem: At the end of Part 1 of this interview, you talked about the importance of the connection in this dance. Because it IS more about that connection and energy, it’s really hard to describe kizomba to someone else. Often, I hear itbeing described in terms of other dances. The description “African tango” has come up a few times, and I’m wondering what your thoughts are on that.

Eddy: I think people describe kizomba that way because they need to refer to the dance with something that is more familiar. If I explained kizomba to you by talking about the other dances it’s connected to or came out of, you probably won’t know what I’m talking about, because you’ve never seen those dances. So ‘African tango’ makes it easy for people on this side of the world, who have not experienced those African dances, to imagine the dance using something they already know.

Kizomba.What is it, and why are more people talking about it? The word itself seems to stir up a whole range of reactions from those who have never danced it. Some of my favorites are:

“Oh, is it related to Zumba?”

“You’re referring to that NEW dance, right?”

“Yeah, I think I’ve seen it and it reminds me of high school dancing. Not much to it.”

“Oh, I can’t do THAT, being glued to a partner that way?”

“It looks so simple.”

I laugh, not just at the reactions, but at how I can relate to them because, before I started learning kizomba myself, I’m sure some of those thoughts ran through my head as well. But it didn’t take long for me to realize that there is so much more to the dance than what it appears to be from the outside. In fact, all of those perceptions above disintegrate when the magic of the true kizomba takes a hold of you.

It’s been four months since The Vancouver International Salsafestival (VIS) 2013. And I still smile an extra big smile whenever I run into one of the team members or even just think about the great time I had over that weekend in March. Keeping in touch with some of the out of town guests and instructors that I met over the course of the festival weekend also brings back good feelings of the time we shared. I know I made some amazing new friends and connections through VIS, and also gathered memories that I will carry with me for a long time.

In particular, I thoroughly enjoyed getting to speak to some of the artists personally, asking them questions about what inspired them, and what drives them to continue in their various art forms.

I am excited to share with you some of their words, in a series of short interviews that were conducted over during the VIS 2013 festivities. Each interview will be presented under the larger title ‘Reminisce on VIS.’ Thank you so much to each of the interviewees for the time and thoughtfulness you put into your responses.

It is with great pleasure that I introduce the first of the series of five interviews:

How I made it to the 9am workshop on the Friday morning of VIS, I have no idea. But I’m so glad I did. Acro- Yoga with Nery and Giana was not just a yoga or dance class, but a lesson in balance – physical and inner- and how to use this to make our connection with our surroundings more meaningful. If only we could wake up to this kind of learning every morning!

How did the yoga become a part of your dancing?

Giana: I’ve been a yoga practitioner for eleven years now. I started yoga when I was sixteen, which is about the same time that I started salsa. But I danced many years before that. My degree is in dance and theatre. But yeah, my whole family is really into yoga. My dad is also a yoga teacher. I got him into it.

“When I’m having a good night out dancing, I feel confident, playful, and a little bit sexy. And along with my own feelings, if I get the connection I want with my partner in the dance, she’ll (heck, sometimes “he’ll”- haha!) feel those same emotions as well. Sharing those feelings, even if only for three-and-a-half minutes at a time, can be a touch magical…and/or really hot. I also like to follow in salsa and bachata when I get the opportunity. It’s a total mind bender to hold the other end of the communication line. It’s fun in its own right, and it makes me a better lead, too.”

“Chaotic, kizomba may seem to the spectator, just like the Chaos Theory is to those who don’t understand life’s intricate connection. Chaos is the domain where instability is the rule, the absence of predictable patterns and connections. But the elements of existence, things that some people view as chaos actually follow the inconspicuous laws of the universe…the function of music, in this case kizomba is to release us from the tyranny of conscious thought, to release the self, the seemingly isolated solid individual into the connective vibration of the heart. Dancing kizomba with the feet might be magnificent, but dancing with the heart is an enlightening spiritual experience.

Nietzsche couldn’t have said it better, ‘You need chaos in your soul to give birth to a dancing star.’ “